So, Gianni Morandi put his social networks in brackets. “I’m taking a break,” he said in a video posted to Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, where, to clarify, he has a total of more than five and a half million followers. “Hey, you won’t be seeing me on social media for a while.” An announcement that no one expected and which confused everyone. But how, he? A pioneer who understood the importance of social dialogue with the public before many artists, he went viral on Facebook in 2014. Only him. As always, the audience was divided into two parts. Those who applauded understandingly, well done again, social networks are a trap. And who, obviously, imagined God knows what, perhaps, health problems: “What should I hide?” he answered a little angrily to the person who wrote to him that “the main thing is that you don’t hide anything.”
In fact, Morandi is being quite sly when in a very short video he says, “Who knows… maybe this will be good for us,” almost as if hinting at some project, some initiative, or whatever case, target strategy. I don’t know. The jokes started immediately. “One in a thousand manages to leave social networks”, “Let your mother tell you to turn off Instagram” and so on, adapting his most famous songs.
Of course, those around him categorically rule out any health problems, and he just finished an extended summer tour, which is certainly not a walk in the park, especially if you turn 79 in December. So, after a decade of continuous exposure, he had an understandable, very understandable need to enjoy a little healthy solitude without constantly questioning himself by posting content on social crossroads. Fortunately, he is not an influencer or a rapper with an inflated ego and therefore can afford the privilege of absence. Even in this, Morandi confirms that he is a “trend setter”, one who dictates trends, because, let’s face it, for many famous people, the slavery of social networks is becoming increasingly burdensome. Constant presence. Responsibility to adapt appearance. Pay attention to the so-called “effects”.
Not bad stress.
First of all, the spirit of competition is important, the need to always match your fame both in answers and in the frequency of dialogue with followers. Work within work. Moreover, work that, especially for artists with a gigantic history and evergreen repertoire, is not as commercially fruitful as it might be for others. In short, Morandi is Morandi, even if he doesn’t post photos on Instagram or write anything on Facebook for a while. The public, the real one, the one who cements his career by buying songs or concert tickets, does not need a tiresome presence, a funny joke or a witty video to remain faithful to his idol. Many people, especially abroad, have come to this conclusion. Obviously, these are time-limited solutions; almost no one has ever completely left the showcase of networks that socialize us in that infinite universe called the “social sphere”. They call it a “social detox” or a “digital detox” and it’s more or less like going on a diet when you pack on a few extra pounds or come back from vacation with buttons struggling to close. If this continues, the social media holiday will become a fixed event, more or less like a ski holiday or the May long weekend. Some time ago, a study by England’s Royal Society of Public Health found that 91 percent of those surveyed admitted to experiencing “anxiety and worry” when using social media. In short, no glowing smartphones. Stop making up Instagram stories. At least for a while. Just to catch my breath.
Many have done this in the past. From Tom Holland’s Spider-Man saying hello to his 67 million followers, to Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber now coming and going from social media like we all should: that is, at will, without obligation, without having to justify ourselves if for several hours he did something else and nothing was “published”. A few years ago, Fedez, an expert on the subject, sang a song with J-Axe called “I’d Like It But There’s No Place,” which seemed like a mirage. Today many want and do not publish anything. Adele did it. Harry Styles did it. Even Ed Sheeran, at the peak of his success, wrote: “I will be away from all social media for as long as I need to.” So will Gianni Morandi, who is 47 years older but exhibits the same spirit: more sociability and less communication, more life and less ostentation.